‘Informal payments’ smooth the road for some

When Gavin Kelly of the Road Freight Association (RFA) asked participants during a recent Beitbridge fact-finding mission why some operators get cleared at the border within hours despite all the problems cited, the answer was immediate: “Money! People are always paying incentive bonuses. I don’t think you have any concept of the corruption at this border post. If you pay R3 000 a month to one or two customs officials then you will not have a problem.” FTW asked some of the other role-players at the border post for their opinions and most agreed to answer on condition of anonymity as one whistle-blower was apparently shot and killed in Musina only a few months ago. The following is a collection of the responses we received. “On average R7 000 per day is lost by operators for every truck that is stuck at a border post. Customs officials know this and so will hold out for a ‘special attendance fee’ as it is cheaper for an operator to pay than to be delayed. “Everyone knows it happens, customs knows it happens, but nothing gets done about it. “The economic climate in Africa leads to bribery and corruption and will never go away. But it can improve if everyone stops paying bribes.” When asked to respond to the allegations, Rudi Kitching who heads up Sars at the border post commented: “If there is any corruption the main thing is we don’t sit back and let it happen. We have various policies and we are proactive. We have awareness campaigns and encourage whistleblowers. We have full certification and a number of checks and balances in place.”